


angels - a ninjago a.u.

by skylar_mack



Series: mortals [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Angst, Character Death, F/M, Gen, Scorched Earth A.U.
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:13:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27506665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skylar_mack/pseuds/skylar_mack
Summary: After March of the Oni, the Ninja are celebrating. They aren't under the threat of a new enemy just yet and use the temporary peace as a chance to heal.They thought the Tornado of Creation banished of the Oni for good, but they were wrong. The Oni are not gone, and the Ninja are unaware of what is coming for them.Turns out, 'Abracadabra' ends with more than just an 'a'.---A Ninjago "March of the Oni" A.U.PLAYLISThttps://open.spotify.com/playlist/3S5rT9S6vthXbpGT5rxAUQ?si=B5oQzMXbRbGambVw5JQU_gContains death, loss, fantasy violence, and blood.I do not own LEGO Ninjago, only this story.Copyright © 2020 by Skylar MackAll rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.Originally posted on wattpad.com
Relationships: Cole/Seliel (Ninjago), Lloyd Garmadon/Harumi, Nya/Jay Walker, P.I.X.A.L./Zane (Ninjago)
Series: mortals [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2010280
Comments: 1
Kudos: 15





	1. one - the defeat

**[Watch the book trailer here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOAOmumc2gM) **

\---

**JAY**

The barricade slid across the monastery doors. Cole's arms glowed orange as he put it in place, the gates shaking from the brute strength of the Oni.

"That's not gonna last forever!" he shouted as it continued to violently shake.

His last word echoed in Jay's mind.

_Forever._

_Forever._

He looked at Nya, her face twisted into an expression of worry and fear that was mirrored on each Ninja's worn face. They were all bruised, bloodied, traumatized, broken, scarred. They'd seen allies murdered, friends possessed, family near dead.

They had seen everything, done everything, tried everything, and yet it wasn't enough. It would never be enough. Because six teenagers whose childhoods had been stripped away meant nothing to the Oni, to the world. They were simply children who were scared beyond measure, and what chance did they have?

He recalled that the Departed Realm was so vast, even villains didn't know each others' identities. There was likely the Ninja would never see each other again.

_This is going to be the last time I see her._

"Nya!"

The water ninja turned at her name. Heart threatening to beat out of his chest, Jay locked eyes with her and threw off his hood. "I- I have to ask you something important."

Her eyes widened. "What?" she asked, bewildered. He could see the adrenaline mixing with her fear, and he could sense the same concoction mixing in the veins of his brothers and himself. "Now?"

Jay saw Lloyd and his father turn, noticing the Lightning Ninja getting sidetracked from the inevitable fight. Nya hesitantly removed her hood.

"Yes, now." He knelt onto the cobblestone floor and put his nunchucks down, taking a deep breath. His nerves still got the best of him, his words tumbling from his mouth faster than he wanted. "Nya, you make me so happy every day." The rest of the team looked over. Nya shook her head slightly, confused. "When we're not together, I miss you so much that it feels like a part of me is missing."

Jay reached into his pocket and pulled out the Yin and Yang pendant kept with him at all times, split it apart, and offered the token to Nya. "Will you be my Yang?"

The whole mountaintop was quiet. Even the sounds of the Oni breaking down the barricade seemed far away as Nya gently took the Yang piece from his hand, her lips slightly parted as she stared at it in surprise.

Of _course_ his best friend had to break the pristine moment.

" _Now_ you're asking?" Cole said incredulously, popping up behind Nya.

"We _seriously_ need to talk about your sense of timing, Jay!" Kai added from the other side of Nya.

The blue Ninja was unusually serious as he said softly, "There may not _be_ another time." This registered with Nya and her eyes returned to him, a smile quickly spreading across her face as she threw her spear aside. "Yes!" She hugged Jay tightly, and he broke into a huge grin. "Of course!" she cried. "Yes, yes, yes!"

Jay hugged her tighter, not wanting the moment to end. For a moment, he forgot about the Oni pounding on the doors to his home and his friends watching their embrace. He only focused on Nya, the girl he'd always loved and couldn't bear to be apart, and the fact that they were officially _together_ and would die together.

But all good things must end eventually.

The door let out a massive groan as it cracked under force. The Oni were getting close to coming in, and it snapped everyone back to the task at hand. Nervously, Jay retrieved his nunchucks, staring at the sizzling lightning linking the golden handles: a Golden Weapon Kai had forged with his bare hands. He would never fight with this weapon again, would never fight alongside these people again, would never see this monastery again. He subconsciously felt the Yin medallion tugging on his gi. _I might never be able to spend time with Nya again._

Tendrils of darkness were creeping over the monastery walls. The doors were mangled, broken shards of wood and metal, and they barely held up behind the barricade. They didn't have long.

"Nya, Jay-- it's been fun, guys." Cole's voice shook with fear and sadness as he pulled his hood off to get a better look at his comrades. Jay saw the pure regret on his face-- remembering all the things he didn't say, the future memories he'd lost, and that all the time he could have spent with the people standing around him would never occur in a second. At the moment, whose mind _wasn't_ thinking all that?

Zane removed his hood as well, gazing at his teammates around him. There was a melancholy in his eyes as he faced forward, raising his Shurikens of Ice. "It has been an honor."

Trying to steel his fear, Jay slipped into a fighting stance like the others. "Let's go out with a bang."

"Yeah." Kai took a deep breath, his hair still spiked perfectly. He flipped the Sword of Fire- _his_ Sword of Fire- to his left hand from his right. "Let's give them--"

"--a tornado!" Lloyd suddenly said, looking far too happy for a deadly situation.

"Yeah! Let's give them a tornado!" Kai said enthusiastically, starting to run forward. He stopped and backpedaled. "Uh... wait, what?"

Jay stared at Lloyd. Was he losing his mind? Their individual Spinjitzu wouldn't be enough to get rid of the Oni; they had already proved that to be ineffective. Hand-to-hand combat was their best bet.

The Green Ninja turned, still grinning. "What is the opposite of Destruction? _Creation!_ " He pointed to the mural of their first adventures together, adventures Jay was surprised Lloyd could recall. "Don't you get it?" he continued excitedly. "Creation-- the Tornado of Creation! It's the one thing that can defeat the Oni-- the power of Creation. But _all_ of us this time, or it won't work," he said, donning his game face.

Jay couldn't help but be skeptical. What if something went wrong? What if it only weakened them, and the Oni killed them faster? "How do you know?"

"Yeah-- it's a miracle it worked the _first_ time!" Kai added frantically.

Lloyd tried to maintain his brave smile, but the team immediately saw through it. "O-okay, I'm guessing... but what do we have to lose?"

"He's right." This was Zane. "We have _nothing_ to lose."

"What the heck, I'm in," Cole said firmly, adjusting his grip on his scythe.

"I love crazy ideas. Let's do it!" Kai gritted his teeth, his brow knit in determination just as Nya's often did.

"We are one now, Nya," he said, his heart fluttering as he said it. "Care to join?" He offered a hand, as if he was escorting her to dance rather than their deaths. She smiled back a bit sadly and took it, squeezing his gloved hand tightly.

Holding her hand, Jay knew that this was the best way for him to leave Ninjago. He was with his best friends and brothers, with his mentor, with his Yang. He couldn't have asked for a better way to go.

Lloyd was arguing with his father, and Garmadon turned to leave right as the doors finally gave in and busted down. Omega stepped onto the ninja's home territory, bringing darkness and the Oni army with him.

Cole, who was closest to the entrance, stepped back in terror. Jay felt the pure panic as well and saw his best friend lose his composure for a second. But almost as if he was back in a time when he was the leader, the Earth Ninja quickly pulled it together and spun into his tornado. "Ninja-go!"

By some unseen force, the whole team spoke together-- possibly for the last time.

" _NINJA-GO_!" they shouted, each transforming into their respective tornadoes.

It felt good to do Spinjitzu again. Jay's tornado spun the fastest, electricity whipping around as they spun around each other and pushed away the Oni. They didn't come together as fast as it had been several years ago, but Jay assumed it was because there were four more people this time. It took a while, but slowly they were all pulled together and merged into a golden tornado that reached for the sky and beyond. It glowed bigger and brighter, and this time, it felt right. It was truly complete.

White-hot electricity sparked around the tornado as it grew. Unlike normal Spinjitzu, Jay couldn't see what was happening-- just that he was spinning, and he didn't stop.

Everything was white, then dark.

\---

Jay awoke to a thick layer of clouds parting, allowing light to shine down on his face. Taking a quick assessment of himself, he realized that he was scraped all over his body. He felt tender places on his face that would definitely become bruised later, but he had dealt with far worse before. He forced his tired body up and got up to see in time to Nya running towards him. They were together in the _monastery_.

"We're alive," he said aloud, then realized the weight of what it meant and laughed, hugging her. "We're _alive_!" he cheered, repeating himself.

He heard Cole get up with a grunt, then yell, _"Kai!"_ The Earth Ninja threw a piece of the monastery's gates off the red ninja with ease and helped him up.

"Where's Lloyd?" Zane asked in concern.

Jay's instant joy was quickly replaced with worry and the team looked around frantically.

Cole gasped. Jay followed his eyes and saw what he was looking at-- an entire door had collapsed, a scrap of green fabric pinned beneath it.

"Oh no," Zane whispered, terror seeping into his voice. Jay held Nya back, staying out of the others' way as they three pulled Lloyd out-- trying to help might make it worse.

They surrounded the Green Ninja. Jay's heart was pounding faster than when he was facing near-inevitable death minutes before. It had been fear earlier. But now it was sheer panic.

_No._

_He can't be._

_Lloyd is_ not _dead._

Everything spiraled down, his throat constricting. He heard his family's voices through a tunnel.

_Lloyd._

_Lloyd!_

_Buddy. Wake up!_

Nya was stock-still, but Jay felt her body and voice shake. "He-he's not moving!"

His eyes welled up with tears. _He can't be gone_.

Cole was blinking hard, his voice cracking. "Someone find Wu. Where's Wu?!" he cried.

The Lightning Ninja felt like curling up and sobbing but he forced himself to try to be strong like everyone else. For Nya. For Cole, Kai, and Zane. For himself. He tried to think, but the youngest team member's name eluded his thoughts to numb the pain. _He's fine. He's gonna be fine. He's going to be fine. He's_ not _lying dead in front of us. He's just sleeping._

He put an arm around Nya and the other around his best friend. The Ninja were silent as Wu ran over and checked on the Green Ninja.

"You-you can do something, right?" Jay choked out.

Silence.

"R-right?!" he cried, his voice jumping multiple octaves.

Wu's voice was rough with emotion as he slowly met the eyes of his students. "There is nothing to be done."

Nya broke down into sobs, crying into her hands and letting the tears stream through her fingers. Zane closed his eyes, crying inside as he silently mourned. Cole was frozen, eyes squeezed shut, slowly taking in shaking breaths that their brother no longer could. Kai's eyes, usually alight with satire or passion, were a dim amber and didn't stray from the Green Ninja's face. Jay's hands were quivering at his sides, his brain refusing to completely process what Wu's words meant.

_This is just a bad dream, and I'll wake up to see everyone alive and together, laughing and smiling, and Lloyd will be there too. It's just a dream. It's not real._

"Oh, Lloyd..." Nya whispered through her tears.

_It's not real._

Kai moved to Wu's side and put an arm around the sensei, silent tears streaming freely down the Fire Ninja's scarred cheeks.

_It can't be real._

Jay buried his face into his hands. He couldn't take it. He'd seen the love of his life die in his arms from poison meant for his enemy, his best friend fall into the swirling darkness, and his brother sacrifice himself to destroy the Overlord. But every time, they came back.

The same would go for Lloyd, right?

_Please, Lloyd._

_You can't leave us!_

Suddenly, Lloyd inhaled sharply, coughing and opening his bright green eyes.

Everyone leaped up and cheered, hugging each other. Jay felt Nya's wet hands on his back and the tears on her face, but now she was crying in the best way possible. The team was yelling and laughing in relief-- Lloyd was alive, and they all had survived to see another day. It was amazing.

Zane helped Lloyd to his feet and the latter said shakily, "Wh... where am I?"

"Don't you remember?" Nya asked, her voice trailing off.

"Yeah... you had us worried there for a sec," Kai said, relieved.

"But- the First Spinjitzu Master-" Lloyd tried.

_What the heck is he talking about?_

"You must've hit your head pretty hard, buddy." Cole threw an arm around Lloyd, and Jay couldn't help but agree. "Yeah, let's get you inside, huh?"

Everyone gathered around their youngest brother and helped him inside their home, chattering happily and letting the last of their sadness fly away in the wind. Things would turn out okay. Everyone was alive, safe, and happy.


	2. Chapter 2

**WU**

Wu was making tea in the Bounty's kitchen. He added his usual blend of tea leaves and spices and left it on the stove to boil, enjoying the gentle quiet and peace--

“YAHHH FIGHT ME!”

“HA, BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME!”

“NO.”

“YES.”

“NO! STOP IT, LLOYD!”

“MAKE ME!”

With an exasperated sigh, he went to check on his Ninja. The sounds of their gaming bore through the supposedly sound-proof walls of the Bounty, and he made his way to the lounge. Though the monastery was mostly in good shape and they had temporarily fixed the major damages done to it, the Ninja seemed content with staying on the Bounty, a home that could fly away from danger. At least this way, the Ninja could travel around Ninjago to check on all the recently unpetrified citizens as well, and they wouldn’t waste their days playing video games.

The only reason Wu had given in to video games (besides the fact that he was utterly exhausted of them going stir-crazy without them) was because it allowed them to be kids. They were able to forget about the responsibilities weighing heavily on their shoulders. In a span of a few weeks, the little innocence and childlike hope for a better world had been crushed. Any hope or chance of normality had vanished long ago.

The only reason they did not gain a post-traumatic stress disorder from this now was because it had been there from their start as Ninja. They could not be any more traumatized than they already were. 

"Take THAT!" Jay yelled, his voice echoing down the hall. Laughter and shouts intertwined with his, dancing and making the ship sunnier among the setting sun. If there was something that would help them forget about their scars, even for a moment, it was worth it. Wu would happily allow them to have it.

“NO, NOT LIGHTNING. FIRE!” Kai countered.

Even if their gaming gave him migraines.

Lloyd and Cole were trash-talking each other, but a change in the game made them start to cheer for another Ninja. Wu didn't need to look to know that Nya was there as well; since the proposal she and Jay were inseparable. He already knew she was there, quietly laughing in amusement at the boys’ antics.

He didn't hear any sign of Zane, though. The white ninja enjoyed playing video games as much as the rest, but his metallic voice didn't join theirs. Quickly glancing into the lounge, he was not surprised to see Kai and Jay aggressively shoving their shoulders into each other to throw the other off as they gamed a few inches from the screen. Lloyd, Cole, and Nya were on the couch, talking amongst themselves and snickering as they watched their teammates play as if their lives depended on it.

A muffled sound came from the dining room, like the slap of paper over each other. Following the sound, Wu found Zane sitting at the dinner table with a deck of cards. The cards were flying between his hands rapidly, the worn cards settling in a neat stack for a second before fluttering into the air again.

The dinner table brought back countless memories, both good and bad. Wu stood there for a moment, remembering everything at once. The Titanium Ninja’s kind blue eyes flickered to his sensei’s and set about laying out his cards. "Salutations, Sensei," Zane greeted.

"Hello, Zane. What are you doing here?" he asked, sitting down on the bench and observing the curious setup of cards.

"I have been practicing various card tricks. I find the science of it quite fascinating, and it is nice to take a break from the others when-"

A loud crash resonated from the lounge, followed by Lloyd and Nya yelling something, and Kai began shouting and swearing in defense.

"-when they do things such as _that_." He smiled with slight guilt and amusement, knowing he was often participating in-- or pretending to not be a part of-- such things. "I have been working on this trick for a while now. Do you mind if I show you?"

Wu nodded, and Zane continued to prepare the card trick. Quietly, he observed the ease and comfort in which the Ice Ninja held himself with. A past Zane would have been baffled to hear that he would eventually find a family as loving, chaotic, and unique as the Ninja team. They worked like a well-oiled machine, and they couldn’t live without the others. 

Almost losing Cole and then almost losing Lloyd in a short period of time reminded Wu once again that life was not forever. That people might, in an instant, lose their life and never return. Every waking moment spent with the Ninja, alive, was a blessing that he somehow took for granted at times.

"This card trick is called 'Abracadabra',” Zane said, snapping his mentor from his thoughts. “It is more commonly received as a magic trick, though it is a product of arithmetics and science. It has nothing to do with serpentine magic or sorcery.”

A particular blue Pyro snake came to mind, and Wu felt a distant wave of guilt wash over him. This information did not regard his students, however, so he decided it was most logical to continue keeping it private. Wishing to move on, he said, "Very well. Carry on, Zane."

Quickly, he dealt out three stacks of cards and set the rest aside, instructing, "Pick a pile." Wu pointed to the rightmost one. Zane fanned it out and showed it to the sensei, holding them up so the faces were not shown to himself. "Pick a card and do not tell me. Let me know when you've got it."

Scanning the deck passively, Wu’s eyes were pulled to the six of diamonds. There was something about how it remained the same no matter how it was oriented or reflected. It would be easy to remember, he nodded. _Six of diamonds._

Zane restacked the piles and repeated the process of dealing three piles, doing so in a specific pattern. He then held up different stacks, asking which held Wu's card. The red diamonds shouted their presence, and by the third time Zane repeated this action, he found that his stomach turned over at the sight of it.

He pushed the feeling aside. _Cards carry no meaning. There is no need to concern oneself over it._

"Now this is where the quote-unquote magic happens. This is the Abracadabra trick because, when I spell it out-" Zane placed down a card for each letter, making a steady line- " _A-b-r-a-c-a-d-a-b-r-_ a." For the last letter, he flipped the card over, and six diamonds showed their faces. “Is this your card?"

"It is indeed." Wu smiled at his student. "That is quite an interesting trick."

And so he went about his day, not giving the card another thought.

**JAY**

Right before the game finished, the screen suddenly froze, having been paused. Jay, Cole, Lloyd, and Nya all exclaimed in surprise. 

“I’m going to order some pizza, anyone want to help?” Kai abruptly stood up, setting his controller down with far too much force necessary. Cole smirked at this, making Lloyd and Jay grin, and at this Nya held in a laugh.

“What?” he demanded, seeing his team’s amused and exasperated reactions. “I’m hungry, and that’s important. Nya, you’re coming with me.”

“I am?”

The red Ninja patted his sister’s shoulder carefully but continued to glare at them. “Yes. Now let’s go.”

Nya rolled her eyes playfully to the Ninja as Kai stormed out. Jay caught her eye and both of their breaths hitched with laughter, bringing the others to crack up as well. Several curses were shouted from outside the hall, followed by Kai yelping, “Sorry, Wu!”

A second later, he poked his head into the doorframe again. “Nya, let’s go order pizza,” he repeated irritably.” She shrugged and reluctantly followed, scratching at a peeling bandaid on the back of her hand. 

The moment the siblings were out of the room, the boys unpaused the game and finished the round. Kai had been losing that round, hence his rage-quitting. On the scoreboard, Jay’s name glowed with a yellow crown- _Hi-Score_! The Fire Ninja’s name was bumped down to second place as Jay took the record.

Lloyd and Cole both turned to stare at Jay in an almost accusatory fashion. The blue Ninja laughed nervously, flicking his eyes between them. “Um… what are you guys looking at me for?”

“Oh, nothing.” Cole tossed a chip in the air and caught it in his mouth. “You just need to cover up your tracks, buddy. Because Kai will kill you when he finds out.”

“Wh- what?” Jay panicked. “Wait- no, I- you guys didn’t show Kai, did you?”

At this, Lloyd cocked his head to the side like a confused puppy. “What are you talking about? You won the game right now. Kai isn’t here yet?”

He turned bright red. “Oh. Hehe… oops. I must have been thinking of something else,” he said, failing to disguise his embarrassment for the mistake. Cole shrugged at Lloyd, neither sure why Jay was acting so strange.

The Green Ninja fiddled with his controller and started a new game, glancing askance to grin at his teammates. His green eyes were glittering with its old mischief. “Ready for a new round? I need to win this one. I’m very behind,” he sighed.

“You’ll catch up soon enough, bud.” Cole patted him on the back, but Lloyd flinched. This reaction made Cole start apologizing rapidly, the Energy elemental repeating “I’m okay, I’m okay” in reassurance. Jay saw that his green robes loosely hid the bandages wrapped around his chest, but the injury still hurt just as badly. Jay would know-- just like the other Ninja, he had been hurt badly from the battles against the Oni. 

Rather than assuring Jay, it still concerned him that Lloyd hid his pain despite it not fooling anyone. Their youngest brother would say “I’m okay” even if he was mortally wounded if it would put the team at ease. It made him wonder how much Lloyd was really hurting-- emotionally and physically.

It made him wonder how much _all_ of them were hurting. Jay wondered how much he himself was hurting… he struggled to make sense of his emotions. There were several moments of pure joy and bliss, and those moments helped balance out the bad temporarily. 

But it was temporary. Eventually, they remembered the injuries and loss and sadness. Over time, they had learned that nearly every good moment was to be destroyed with a painful one sooner than later. They learned to expect the worst, to know that happiness wouldn’t last. 

The lounge’s energetic, excited atmosphere had drained. Cole had retrieved a roll of bandages to redo Lloyd’s dressing on his torso, and as he unwrapped it Jay saw that the white cloth was stained a rusty red. The Energy Ninja was clenching his teeth through the pain, struggling to keep up his strong demeanor. Jay extended a hand and firmly gripped Lloyd’s, seeing the waves of pain reflected on his face.

It wasn’t a healthy way to live. The Ninja needed time to heal in every way.

Whether they were going to get that time or not, Jay didn’t know.


End file.
